ABACUS

ABACUS is a yearly, members-only survey that gathers key information on financial operations and provides benchmarking goals and insight. The participation of hundreds of ABA members results in valuable data that help improve business operations and profitability. ABACUS also provides valuable insight for ABA Education.

The ABACUS Survey gathers financial data about operations from ABA member stores via a secure and confidential electronic form. Participating stores in ABACUS receive customized reports of aggregated data that analyzes their financial results, including comparisons with other stores based on multiple criteria—such as sales level, store size, and profitability. Participating stores also have a fully secure online dashboard, which offers sophisticated analytical tools for running dynamic reports and exploring trends across a number of criteria. The ABACUS report puts a store's finances within a fully intelligible industry framework, giving owners and managers context, insight, and essential benchmarking guidelines to improve the bookstore's performance.